Lowenfield’s report gives APNU+AFC larger margin than Mingo’s fraudulent numbers
-disenfranchises 60% of the electorate; suggests APNU has won Region 6
By Ravin Singh
The controversial report submitted to the Guyana Elections Commission (GECOM) Saturday by Chief Elections Officer (CEO) Keith Lowenfield shows a larger margin for the incumbent APNU+AFC than the victory handed to them by Returning Officer (RO) of Region 4, Clairmont Mingo, based on fraudulent numbers in early March.
This is if the Commission is to consider his observations.
In his report, Lowenfield reduced the number of valid votes recounted from 460,352 to 160,260 – which would effectively mean that 275,092 or 60% of the electorate would be disenfranchised.
Of the 185,260 votes which the CEO considers valid, 125,010 or 67% is awarded to the APNU+AFC and 56,627 or 30.5% to the PPP. The remaining votes were awarded to the smaller parties.
Additionally, one of the most shocking claims by Lowenfield is his suggestion that the Coalition has won Region 6 – a PPP stronghold – by more than 4,000 votes. His numbers show the PPP securing 5,021 votes and the APNU+AFC 9,437.
In 2015, the PPP won that region 39,610 to 22,103.
The APNU+AFC had mounted unsubstantiated and unproven claims of votes being invalid because they were cast in the name of persons who are either dead or were out of the country on Election Day. The party has, however, failed to provide evidence to support these claims.
As a matter of fact, scores of persons who noticed their names on death certificates and on list of those migrated have since come forward to prove that they voted on March 2.
Lowenfield then inserted these unproven allegations of the APNU+AFC in his report, adding that he is unable to determine whether the elections which he was responsible for executing, were conducted in a fair and credible manner.
But it was under Lowenfield’s watch in 2015 that the coalition secured a narrow victory over the PPP by less than 5,000 votes.
In those elections, the coalition bagged 207,200 votes, while the PPP secured 202,694 votes. Overall, 412,012 valid votes were cast in those elections, and there were no claims of irregularities by Lowenfield or GECOM.
But despite his “observations,” Lowenfield included the correct tabulation from the recount process which shows the PPP winning the elections by 15, 416 votes.
Meanwhile, in 2015, to confirm the authenticity of its numbers, GECOM had also made public its Statements of Polls (SOPs) which confirmed the coalition’s victory.
However, in 2020, the elections regulatory body has refused to release the SOPs, despite calls from stakeholders including the international community.
The recently-concluded recount was embarked upon after Mingo’s attempt to rig the elections was uncovered and challenged in the courts.
Mingo’s inflated numbers had given the APNU+AFC 236,990 votes to the PPP/C’s 229,489.
The recount proved that Mingo subtracted 3000+ PPP votes and added 19,000+ votes for the coalition.
But the recount has shown that the PPP won the elections by more than 15,000 votes.
Local and international observers, including the Private Sector Commission (PSC), the Organisation of American States (OAS), the Commonwealth, and the ABCE foreign powers have urged acceptance of the recount results.
